SPOKANE, Wash. – Visiting Eastern Oregon dominated the second and third quarters on the way to a 51-17 win over Whitworth in a non-conference football game on Saturday afternoon in the Pine Bowl.
The Pirates lost their season opener and will look to get on the winning side of the ledger next week when they travel to Redlands (Calif.).
EOU (1-1) outscored Whitworth 38-3 over the course of the second and third quarters, outgaining the Pirates 358-129 over the same period.
The game started positively for Whitworth. Hayden Throneberry forced a fumble that was recovered by Drew Cody on the Mountaineers' opening possession, allowing the Bucs to take over on EOU's 39-yard line. Four plays later Logan Lacio threw a short pass to Jheremie Cacpal, who eluded one defender and raced 29 yards to the endzone.
EOU found its offensive rhythm at the end of the first. Kallen Gutridge threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to Dylan Shipley to get the Mountaineers on the board with 1:39 left in the period.
Not counting a Hail Mary pass at the end of the first half that ended with an interception, EOU scored on eight of its next nine possessions, and seven of those were touchdowns. Gutridge completed 25 of 36 passes for 321 yards with four TD passes. He also ran seven times for 39 yards and another score. Shipley finished with eight catches for 122 yards and three touchdowns.
Gutridge found Shipley again with 45 seconds left in the second quarter to make the score 27-10 at the break. After Whitworth was forced into a three-and-out to start the second half, Gutridge helped put the game away with touchdown passes of 28 yards to Shipley and 49 yards to Tyler Creswick for a 41-10 lead midway through the third period.
Both teams added a touchdown apiece in the fourth quarter. Grant Spillman scored on a five-yard run to get the Pirates back on the board.
EOU outgained Whitworth 562-277, including a 224-79 advantage in rushing yards.
Lacio completed 12 of 27 passes for 133 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Several of his incompletes, and the interception, were due to dropped passes by the Pirates. Deacon Dietz caught six passes for 85 yards, while Cacpal had three for 46 yards. Jimmy Hughes went 8 of 10 for 60 yards as the fourth quarter QB, while Spillman gained 34 yards on his four fourth-quarter rushes.
Cody led the Whitworth defense with a dozen tackles and the one fumble recovery. Throneberry added nine stops, while Maddox Suitonu had the interception and six tackles. The Pirates did not record a sack and had only two tackles for loss against EOU's physical line.
The Mountaineers have won two in a row against Whitworth after the Pirates won three straight.
